The Web of Life

“When you tug at a single thing in nature”,wrote John Muir, “you’ll find it attached to the rest of the world.”

The study of wildlife involves much more than the study of individual species; it means attending to the connection between species, their habitat and of course, the impacts of human activity on wildlife. In this simulation activity, students follow several food chains, beginning with the sun’s energy and ending in nutrient rich soil. All the student’s food chains are symbolically depicted in a large hand-held, interconnected food web.

Grade 6 : Science Curriculum Links *

Understanding Living Systems: Biodiversity

Overall Expectations
1. assess human impacts on biodiversity, and identify ways of preserving biodiversity;
3. demonstrate an understanding of biodiversity, its contributions to the stability of natural systems, and its benefits to humans.

Specific Expectations
1.2 assess the benefits that human societies derive from biodiversity and the problems that occur when biodiversity is diminished
2.1 follow established safety procedures for outdoor activities and field work
2.4 use appropriate science and technology vocabulary, including classification, biodiversity, natural community, interrelationships, vertebrate, invertebrate, stability, characteristics, and organism, in oral and written communication
3.2 demonstrate an understanding of biodiversity as the variety of life on earth, including variety within each species of plant and animal, among species of plants and animals in communities, and among communities and the physical landscapes that support them

* Curriculum links & expectations for this program are based on “The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1-8: Science and Technology”